Hi from Basra.
Interesting to note that in regards to environmental concerns I have been reliably informed via FOI act that ‘Scottish Ministers’ now have the final say on protection of areas deemed to be of significant or national or indeed international environmental importance, such as the delayed SPA/MPA/NIMA around Tiree or SSSI etc and within the proposed Argyll/Tiree Array location….
So, we have people who have little or no idea of what does harm to the Scottish environment making the decisions (case by case) on if a/or many turbine/s are put up to save us from recognised GLOBAL WARMING or put up for economic reasons/to line the pockets of the energy giants with our TAX etc.
And if in Tiree’s case, put up in areas deemed by the JNCC to far exceed criteria for accreditation.
We have the purse holders making the environmental decisions ! and given that the original rationale behined renewables is supposed to be primarily environmental this objectively is a very bad development … at a later date I will or NTA will expand on this issue,
However, for now, be aware without any spin fore or against… that the folk tasked with protecting Scotlands natural heritage by giving solid advice to the Scottish government in regards to environmental protection/preservation: SNH/JNCC etc are at the core of their organisations not happy at this evolving development.
A decision to proceed or not proceed with a development should obviously be based on the local environment and not economics. If this change is to become the becomes the case ,then it also becomes factual that any windfarm development now firstly goes through the commercial gain turnstile without deference to the environment…a turnstile that “usually” only moves in one direction.
The plot thickens like cooling brochan…lets hope it sticks

Karl Hughes also commented

You should come to Tiree…! see the basking sharks…it’s a bumper year so far.

Hi, I Will be around Ardfern in my Contessa during my next break (weather permitting) Lets have a pint or two.

Karl

“potential gravy train before others cottoned on” ???

Without involving NTA…and totally from a personal perspective:

I tell you why Malcolm…because we showed the initiative to share a resource and put the profits directly into our community and not into the hands of off island share holders. If legislation and finance allowed we would use the all the generated power (directly) rather than indirectly on the island…and not see substancial line loss. Our diesel generator would until an alternative arrives back the system up.
Tilley is sustainable and stand alone…I feel our landscape can handle such a structure and also feel that “onshore” we could and should continue to install smaller domestic and agricultural turbines…Such as Coll is also doing…my stance has remained stead fast on this point since I visited CAT in mid-Wales some 25 years ago.

I defer to Tims following comments.
And re-emphasise my commitment to “community Renewables” projects.

It explains how we raised the cash…basically we borrowed the cash from the bank and are paying it back at a rate lower than the income it is generating…the cash benifits we see now are small in comparison with what she will earn in the not so distant future…

Please read the info and tell me if we, in your opinion are on the aformentioned Gravy Train or not

Malcolm…having oil does not make using it right…as I have just said…our reliance on oil is an addiction .
Relgious politics in the Gulf, Sunni/Shia/Walid etc mean that if the Gulf came embroiled in a war and the gulf stopped moving oil…we could see an increase at the pumps of around 35% overnight…the problem is our strategic reserves (I talk about europe here) would last but a few weeks…rationing would not be an option and the price increase would never be applied…anarchy would follow…this is not some sort of hollywood movie this is a real possiblity, more so now than yesterday…
There is no alternative than to have a mix of energy source…I believe community generation is one of the ways to go (others do not) I believe saving is the way to go (others do not)…one thing is for certain if we do not act now (yesterday) we (the human race) will have civilisation changing concequences to face within my childrens life times…and most likely in mine too…we have to face the future now and not put it on our kids or their kids…we have to.

As an example if the Argyll Array went ahead (Ye God’s forbid) its generation when turning, theoretically will be on par with Scotlands current entire Hydro generation.

Note: on storage…agreed super connector to Norway will be used for pumped storage…?

Recent comments by Karl Hughes

Sturgeon in cloud cuckoo land in call for return to ‘everyday concerns’So Keitho… as promised I visited Tobe, to check that rock out that you hide under, and get that pint off you and your cybernat buddies…seems quite a few folk know you as being all wind and no content…. SNP suits you well.lol… poped in your “frequented” boozer… lol… you really do live the dream don’t you.

First meeting of Scotland’s Refugee Task ForceIraq ? more problems ? I don’t think its in any doubt that this part of the world will have more problems…
I accept that there would be no assistance from the UK govnt… it takes a bit of soul searching to come to places like this … something I would not expect your ilk to understand….somebody needs to come here…and some of us were asked to come here by Iraq.
You individuals are part of the problem NC/K… you can never be expected to be part of the solution… you simply do not have the necessary skills or life experience.

Merkels economic based decision is condemning more “migrants and “refugees” to abuse and death while seeking to travel to the EU.

Taking “real” desperate cases into our countries can alleviate some of the hardship these people are going through ( Families/Old/Young) solving these issues at source is the only realistic humanitarian option that makes sense… multiplying the aid given to the UN camps, vetting at these camps for the most needy cases… these camps are safe Jazz, have you ever visited a refugees camp ??? I have, many.

The countries dealing with the Middle Eastern strife and at breaking point are Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon these should be the benefactors of much needed foreign aid… and that is what we are providing and plan to provide more of, not only tents and clothes…but also teachers and doctors… the refugees in these camps are with people of the same ethnic and cultural background…and that helps these people with some semblance of normality until the issues raised by IS are resolved…

To answer your initial question as to if I “sleep at night” yes I do… 3 or 4 years ago when the local Shia and Sunni where knocking shit out of each other I did not sleep so well… but Basrah is now a dammed sight more peaceful than then, safe even… the economy is growing and the infrastructure is coming back online… there are no starving or suffering people here now… yet daily young guys, the educated and professional folk are packing up and moving with the exodus north towards Europe… this has implications for us at home, but also massive implications for Iraq… its is causing a national brain drain … a drain on Iraqi national resources that is filled by foreign workers like myself.

And now because a photo of one of the thousands of dead children has hit home at your previous head in the sand mentality, the left… narcissistic, “I” really care factions are stuffing these people …you feel en mass that you have to be seen to “care”… if you cared you would not be asking these people to risk all in some sort of EU green card lotto death walk…. Wake up and open you dammed eyes.

Merkel has put all of the exodus parties in the same pot, lessening the available support for the refugees from war and giving more to the migrants from poverty…. at some point we have to make choices as to who we can help,….oh and if you have not noticed Germany and Austria have now too shut their borders…

There is nothing nationalist or racist about what I have posted… realist yes.

Far from saving peoples lives…Merkel has sentenced more people to death in the Med and crossing the Sahara.

Maybe you would like to contribute to the solution to all of this hardship Jazz…maybe you have some thoughts of your own……then again, maybe you do not.